Life

Lessons from Outside the Comfort Zone

Two fierce IRONMAN rivals teamed up recently to take on a new challenge. Here's what everyday athletes can learn from them.

by Jordan Cantwell

In 2014, Germany’s Sebastian Kienle and USA’s Ben Hoffman battled one another all day long to finish one-two at the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Hawai'i. As long-course triathletes, they are fierce competitors who'll give their all to win.

Earlier this year, the two athletes put that rivalry aside to team up for something greater than fame: They competed as a team at the iconic Cape Epic multi-stage mountain bike race in South Africa to raise awareness and money for the IRONMAN Foundation. (Read our daily blog on the event and see vlogs from the guys here.)

The rigors of the event challenged these two champions in new ways, requiring a dependence on each other that would be considered unfathomable in their triathlon day jobs. Read on to learn how their experience might change your own approach to racing.

Freshen things up

Even for seasoned professionals who have both been racing at the highest level for over a decade, the eight-day mountain bike stage race was a surprise departure from their regular racing routine.

"After a tough Kona I had this realization that I needed a change in my career to freshen things up," Hoffman reflects. "So to do this unique and challenging event while racing for a bigger cause seemed perfect." Kienle concurs: "After more than 15 years of racing professionally in triathlon, it was just time to try something different and think about not just racing for the win but for the experience itself."

Plan ahead and be prepared

In preparation for the race, Hoffman remained in his home base of Tucson, Arizona. while Kienle stayed in Europe battling the German winter. They may not have trained together, but the two compared methods and equipment notes to prepare for the unknowns of Cape Epic.

Kienle’s primary focus was enhancing his mountain bike skills: "I needed to be technically capable so I didn’t face a constant risk of crashing… I had to get really comfortable on my mountain bike!" Hoffman acknowledges that it was a little overwhelming to prepare for a race that had so many unknowns: "We train hard week after week to race… but never for a race across multiple days and on mountain bikes."

In anticipation, Hoffman, like Kienle, spent more time on his mountain bike to sharpen his technical skills as well as build strength and endurance. "Being on a mountain bike for five hours a day punishes your body in a totally different way than a road bike!" he says.

Besides the physical preparation, they also reviewed the equipment and logistical details required for an eight-day stage race, with the help of their spouses.

Check in as you go

Cape Epic represented a leap into the unknown for both athletes making it difficult for them to have specific expectations for the race. They believed they were starting the race with comparable fitness and experience but the team nature forced them to communicate clearly with one another to reach the finish line together. "We discussed a plan and certain elements of the race before it started," Hoffman said, "but plans are just that… eventually you have to adapt and roll with the punches."

Their main goal was to remain close at all times in order to troubleshoot mishaps and mechanicals together. Kienle believes that regular communication was a critical component to their teamwork, in particular as Hoffman developed a stomach bug during the first several days of the event. "We would talk to one another whenever there was an opportunity," explains Kienle, "not holding back on anything to reduce stress and ensure we were on the same page as we negotiated the trails." They reviewed their goals for the event upfront, but adjusted on the fly.

Respect the challenge

"Sheer brutality" is not how I expected hardened IRONMAN regional and world champions to describe their experience at Cape Epic, but it’s obvious that the event thoroughly challenged both men.

Hoffman underscores how different this event was from the usual single day IRONMAN event: "Challenging terrain, tons of climbing, and long distances that leave you pretty beat up each day… IRONMAN is an extreme one-day event, but this is eight days of punishment!"

Kienle wasn’t surprised by the immense challenge of the race but he was taken aback by the aggressive nature of racing, especially during the first 10 to 15 minutes. Thankfully, his IRONMAN experience came to the fore, recognizing that long-distance racing is a game of patience: "The race is not won in the first 15 minutes, so there’s no reason to put your life on the line to be one spot ahead at the start!"

Both athletes were well aware of the risk involved in mountain bike racing and hoped they had prepared well enough to avoid any serious mishaps. Despite this, Hoffman suffered a hard crash during the Queen stage of Cape Epic, and injuries to his lower back impacted the defense of his IRONMAN African Championship title just three weeks later: "I hoped that I would be able to manage the pain on the day and pull off a miracle to compete for the win again," reflects Hoffman. "But I suspected it wasn't going to happen from the first steps when I ran into the water during the swim start." Hoffman remained positive and even when the pain rendered him unable to run the marathon, he elected to complete the race out of respect for the event and his fellow competitors.

It’s not just physical

With their track record of IRONMAN titles and sub-8-hour finishes, you might imagine these two could write the book on mental toughness. Apparently, there was more to learn. Hoffman had looked forward to Cape Epic as a mental break from the demands of IRONMAN training but instead discovered it was "more of a mental workout than anything in recent memory." Kienle agrees, but says that like a muscle, after adequate recovery, mental toughness will rebound even stronger. Indeed, as he hoped at the outset, Cape Epic has left Kienle "mentally fresh and willing to compete again in triathlon at the highest level."

The rivals respected one another before they became teammates and that sentiment has only been enhanced by the Cape Epic experience. "Now I know how tough Sebi really is," laughs Hoffman, "and it makes me nervous to race him again!" Kienle echoes the feeling, noting his deep respect for Hoffman’s commitment and work ethic: "A lot of other people would have quit in the race with the stomach troubles he had but he persevered."

Jordan Cantwell is a multiple-time IRONMAN finisher, Kona qualifier, and writer living in San Francisco.